Lazy Summer Days.

The garden is still a mess and will stay that way until its possible to walk without falling over but we are safe and dry in our house and that’s the most important thing. Especially as Catherine & Isabella arrive tonight. I shall go to collect them from East Midlands Airport.

Today I have done nothing much, got up late and rested and played about on the computer.The next few days we will be busy cleaning and painting their new home.

Today is my baby’s birthday. Simon is 28, he was born in the middle of a heat wave and it was 90degrees F in the delivery room in Shrewsbury Hospital. He was a bouncing 9 pounds 15 and a half ounces. I think we’ll call that 10 pounds.

In the nursery he looked ridiculous alongside the other babies, with a thick head of red hair and twice the body size and length of the others. It looked like someone had sneaked a 3 month old child in there.

He also cried the longest and loudest and didn’t stop until he was 11 months old. Any thoughts of another child were quickly forgotten, I could never have gone through that again!

He grew into a very, sweet, small child but as he got older developed an unhappy knack of being incredibly accident prone and forever getting caught in the act in any act of deceit, which small boys (and bigger ones) are prone to. He always knew it was just a matter of time before Mum found him out.

This year he is getting married and has achieved,  a very responsible, highly paid career and I’m very proud of him.

 

 

Happy Birthday. X.

Clearing Up.

Above is the sight that greeted me Saturday morning.

Its Monday afternoon now and all is quiet here, the brook is back where it should be and the chickens are safe, for the time being in their house. Their house had to be retrieved from 2 doors away where it was in the middle of a sort of ‘Log Jam’ of trampolines, next door’s Wendy House and numerous 6 foot Larchlap fencing panels.

A quick check of our garden showed we had gained a heavy wooden shed base, ;  

 a large canoe, a golf bag, complete with balls, various beach balls, a greenhouse heater, fencing panels,

plastic flower pots and a family sized paddling pool plus a ride-on child’s army jeep.

Everything is coated in mud

and the lawn really shouldn’t be walked on, you just sink through it. Unfortunately, it was necessary to walk on it while we set the chickens up with a home again. As part of the lawn is a very steep slope ,the inevitable was bound to happen. Oh no! Not an earthquake on top of everything else…… No, just me going down on my ample backside!

Saturday afternoon we went to have a look at Hylton Road, where the BBC Studios are. The temporary flood barriers should have been erected here but the Environment Agency didn’t get them in place on time. I don’t know that they would have held this amount of water back but for the people living there, who have now been flooded out yet again, it would have been good to try! I'm sure that's what these poor people, who were just evacuating their homes thought

If Friday night was surreal with the Mayor and Leader of the Council walking through my kitchen, (thankfully its not an old house with a back passage, that could have made another news story entirely), then Saturday night was bizarre!!

Again I was cooking the dinner, when the phone rang. I answered it and it was somebody called Chris Vallance from BBC Five Live. He said he’d seen my Blog and could they have a Live interview from either me or Mike. I volunteered Mike, as that’s what he does best, well it’s the only thing really. He also wanted to use a photo of mine on their website. I had no objection to that and here’s a link to it. BBC Five Live

Mike did the interview and then the phone rang again. This time it was BBC 24’s Betty Redondo. I passed her on to Mike and he ended up doing another Live interview. They used one of my photos on screen while they were talking to him, which was exciting. Think I might have to start a career as a News Photographer.

There hasn’t been much to laugh about but yesterday I had to admire the fortitude of Anita Woodhouse, who did the most sterling job of reading out all the road closures on BBC Hereford and Worcester, for hours on end. Not once did she crack when she read ‘and in Upton Upon Severn, Minge Lane is only accessible from the bottom entrance’

The forecast is for more rain, I hope it isn’t going to be much. I realise how very lucky we have been compared with so many people who are having the most miserable time, many without, homes, water or electricity. No matter how lucky I might have been it still doesn’t alter the fear a massive body of water, rushing passed your house generates. The knowledge that there is nothing you can do against this unstoppable force, other than just hope for the best is mind altering.

PS.

I didn't have time to upload this before now but this short clip gives some idea of the force of the water. It was just a short distance away from our house.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pV8GdO9NFh4

 

Tags: Worcester Floods.

The Aftermath

The above pictures are of the brook at the bottom of my garden, last weekend.

 

Apart from some aches and pains and a few bruises, from the chicken rescue, I’m OK today. I’m grateful that my home is safe but the devastation that I am hearing about today is almost unbelievable.

This is how the gardens were looking by the time I'd finished rescuing the chickens, I have to realise now I had been putting my own life at risk. That is next door's large Wendy House. Those posts you can see are holding six feet tall fence panels.

I’ve just heard Mike on his Radio programme talking to a lady who is stuck on a Narrowboat on the River Avon, they are tied to a post in floodwaters and are in fear for their lives.

I could cry for all the weddings that aren’t going to happen today.

Last night the flood waters made it up onto the patio, this meant the chickens had to be moved into the garage.

Thankfully I never followed up the bee keeping idea, that's my beehive floating by.

Our road was flooded at the lower end and the end house was in danger of being flooded, people were trying to organise sandbags.

I've heard this morning she had about a foot of water in but Malcolm, our neighbourhood Super Hero, got her carpets up last night and has been helping mop up this morning.

By the time I started cooking dinner it was very late. Mike popped next door again to see if Becky was OK, as she has three children, one only a few months old. Her husband is stuck at his place of work in Gloucestershire.

Mike walked back in and called “Stand by for the Mayor and the  Leader of the local Council.” Sure enough they then passed through my kitchen to have a look at our flood. I was at this time on my second glass of wine, tired, emotional and in need of food. My hair was still dripping wet. I think it was a surreal moment for all of us.

We missed a party in Cheltenham last night. Tonight we are supposed to be having a special meal in Worcester City. That won’t happen. We can’t get into Worcester, in fact we are almost cut off from the rest of the world.

Our personal flooding is abating now but the rest will get much worse. It’ takes days for the flood waters to pass down the River Severn from Wales. I don’t like to think how much worse it can get.

Simon is safe at his Dad’s but I’m not sure he will get here tomorrow.

What a happy start to the holidays!

Other photos :-

This is the road at the other side of the playing field, just yards from our garden.

 

.

The Wendy House is now gone!

Nearly on the patio!

Tags: Worcester Floods, Fooding

WTF is up with this weather!!!!!

I've been practising my Anglo Saxon this afternoon.

 

That’s not all I’ve been doing. Today is the start of the six-week Summer Break from school. What would you expect me to be doing? Sitting on the terrace enjoying a long cool G & T, gradually building up my tan for when we fly to Kefalonia next month? Yes, that would be about normal.

 

But….NO! We have had the rain from Hell here today. It hasn’t stopped once, not for a blithering moment and it hasn’t just been rain, ooooh no!

 

(Cue Marks & Spencer’s Advert with that bloody woman, with her, by now, annoying Irish accent)

 

“This is not just rain (breathy pause) this is S & M rain.” Only a Sadomasochist could enjoy this.

 

At 3pm Mike rang to say he was leaving Gloucesterimmediately. He had just finished his programme and knew I needed help dealing with the chickens.

 

At 5pm he still hadn’t returned and as I was talking on the phone to Flo, whilst at the same time keeping an eye on the garden, the conversation was brought to an abrupt halt as I saw the brook had broken its banks.

 

The chickens were rescued, one at a time, in a Sainsbury’s bag for life. They never knew the many uses these bags could be put to!

 

My girls are in the shed and the hen house, by now, will have floated somewhere, as has everything else. Never, in living history and probably since man has been on this planet, has this place flooded like this. I have probably used up a lifetime of swearing.

 

Mike finally arrived home, normally a 50 minute journey at 6.45pm.

 

The lady at the bottom of the road, who lost her husband in a house fire 10 years ago, is now just about to be flooded andshe has her 93 old mother living with her.

 

We are a bit higher up the road but I am not confident that we will keep the water out of the house. With previous floods its been a bit of fun and everything has been back to normal in an hour or two. We thought we were safe. We’ve had to seriously revise that idea.

 

It’s now 8.30 and its still frickin raining. We just walked across to the playing field, to try to assess the situation. The road that crosses the brook at that point is impassable, as is every road that crosses the brook. There were cars everywhere, roaring around, turning, trying the next crossing but were thwarted at each attempt. The area known as Dines Green is cut off from the rest of Worcester and I’ve heard many villages are also.

 

There must be so many people who just can’t get home this evening.

 

I’m waiting to hear Simon has arrived safely at his Dad’s in Mid Wales.

 

If I’m still here I will post photos later. I doubt I will get much sleep.

Merlins May Be Magical..but they're not Big and they're not Clever!!!

OK!…….So what’s with the weather? I really have had enough. The garden has become so over grown it’s almost met in the middle. The brook has been up and down like a whore’s drawers and there hasn’t been a whiff of a barbeque for weeks.

Two weeks ago, our neighbour knocked at the door and said, had we seen the clouds? We looked out and saw a bizarre circular formation above our houses.

By half past eight, it looked like this and then the heavens opened.

I had a disturbed night as the rain was so heavy most of the night. I got up at 6.30am and looked out of the office window and could see there was a little bit of water in next door’s garden, from the brook. I assumed it had spilled over a little in the night and was going back down now. I mentioned it to Mike and went off to the bathroom. A couple of minutes later, he came running back in and said we had to move the chickens as the water was coming up, FAST!

The annoying thing was, it was now quite sunny but the water was rushing up the garden at an unstoppable force. So, dressed in our dressing gowns and old shoes, we had to go and rescue the hen house complete with occupants, which was now half submerged. Wading up to our knees, we had to get them over a narrow bridge, usually this is done with an empty coop and we are able to invert it so the narrow top passes easily through the handrails. This time it was complete with occupants and so had to be lifted clear of the handrails. Not easy and slipping about on wet wood didn’t help.

On the way, I noticed our cat, Merlin, was sat on the bench by the pond. The bench was now encircled by water and I wondered why the stupid cat had gone through the water to get there. When we finished with the hen house I realised that Merlin might still be on the bench. I waded back down to look. By now there was a very distressed cat who was just about to be submerged by water. It then occurred to me. Every morning he goes to sit on this bench. It must have been dry when he sat there but the water came in too quickly for him to escape. It was a good job I’d seen him, the bench was totally submerged soon after I saved him.

This was taken from my office, Merlin sitting on top of the hen house after his escapade. He's still wearing a shocked look! The brook. Can anyone recommend some good plants for a heavy, moist soil?

The brook went back down but a few days later we had another night of torrential rain. This time it came up in the middle of the afternoon. I was in the office and a neighbour came round to alert us. The chickens were still on the high ground, so perfectly safe and all the cats were in. Then I noticed next door’s Cairn Terrier, Merlin was standing in the middle of the flood and appeared to be stuck. At first I couldn’t understand why and called him to encourage him to move. I realised he was trapped on a raised bed and the water was rising up to his little fat tummy. His owners were out and so, yet again, I had to go wading through the water to rescue another Merlin.

The floods have subsided now but the weather hasn’t improved much.

No trampolining today!

Catherine and Isabella have arrived from Germany and we are trying to find them somewhere to live and a car for Catherine. They have been here a week and I can honestly say, I’ve barely had a moment to myself in that time, so apologies if I haven’t read your latest entries yet, I will get there, I promise.

Here is a short clip filmed this morning, I was feeling arty, so went for the watercolour effect.It’s a lovely mother and daughter moment.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYcfMBQIATo

Isabella asleep.

 

A very special thank you gift for me, from Catherine & Flo, some David Austen Roses.

 

 

And thank you for the all the lovely comments on my last entry.

I'm Still Here.

Gosh! Am I One, already?

Time passes too quickly, Isabella had her 1st Birthday this week. This entry should have been written ages ago but time and tiredness seem to get the better of me. Plus I have been helping some people with their family research, there just aren’t enough hours in the day!

I have been managing to read all my regular Journals but haven’t had time to comment on many, how do you all find the time to write so much? I get about 20 Alerts a day! Can you slow down a bit so I can catch up with myself? Lol.

My trip to Germany was a little shorter than usual but just as enjoyable, even though, as usual, the weather went off as soon as I got there and we only had a few hours of sunshine.

Where they live.

It was dry when I arrived but had rained earlier in the day, so it was very humid, which is why this mist kept creeping up and down the field behind their apartment.

As usual most days involved cake. The best was when we went to the first birthday party of the girl that Catherine looks after some mornings. Her Mum teaches English at the Schloss (Castle) which is her husband’s family home.

(Arriving at my first Birthday Party.)

Catherine, Isabella and I were all invited to the party and after nearly having a heart attack climbing the stairs to their suite of rooms , it was worth it. They have a beautiful home and the views were amazing. As was the cake, all made by Dad.

(Part of the Scloss.)

(Three, enormous cakes, they were twice as big as they look here.)

We had a wet day looking around Marburg, which was very pretty but very wet. I wasn’t feeling too good either as a legacy from Simon, a ten pound baby, decided to rear it’s ugly head. I was in need of medication but Germany doesn’t have the 'Help yourself’ type of chemists, like Boots and Superdrug and if they didn’t speak English I was certainly going to suffer. So over a coffee, Catherine and I explained to Flo that he was going to have to get me some suppositories.

Now Flo’s English is near perfect but there are some words he may not know, simply because they are not words that have entered his world. I had to explain that I didn’t want cream, I wanted the little rockets that you shove up your……….

(I photographed these horses at Hellens, Much Marcle last week, it was a plant and food Fayre.)

The laughter this caused, nearly made me have convulsions, we were crying with laughter, so much so that the waiter came over to see if everything was alright. We didn’t explain!

All too soon I had to leave my two princesses and return to home. We stopped at Biedenkopf, where Isabella was born and had lunch in the castle overlooking the hospital ,

(Ladies wot lunch. This Russian top belonged to her German Granny and is over 40 years old.)

it really was like being up in a plane!

 

I still had a couple of days before returning to school and did a bit of grave hunting in St John’s Halesowen. Sadly the large number of family I have buried there were pre 1850 and their stones can no longer be read, or have been removed to line the paths.

St John’s is a beautiful red sandstone, medieval church ,it was covered in scaffolding on this visit but the churchyard was as lovely as ever. I wandered up to a higher part I had not been in before,

 

with huge old copper beeches and alive with squirrels,

 

I have never seen so many, they were bounding all over the place, like a scene from Snow White.

Back to school and masses to do and in the afternoons Catherine has me viewing properties they might want to rent. I photograph and email them to her.

Simon and Tori came up for the weekend and came in the BMW, so Mike could have a look. The weather was good and we both had a test drive, with the top down. Mike loved it and I can se he will need reminding, IT’S MINE!

Tori and I went and organised the wedding flowers. Lovely Barbeque in the garden on the Saturday Night

Last week we went to a champagne reception in the Guildhall, Worcester, a stunning venue and a most enjoyable evening, black tie and posh frocks! We met someone whom Mike has spoken to, doing interviews during his work at BBC Hereford and Worcester and I was pleased to finally meet him as I have always had a soft spot for him. His name is John Peters and he was one of two RAF pilots shot down in the Gulf war in 1991. They were paraded on TV by their captors and I feared so much for their lives, I known when I saw poor John’s bruised and swollen face I shed many tears.

John was just as charming as I knew he would be and his wife and I chatted for ages about, who knows what, we’d both been drinking the champagne! But we must have all got on well as she wanted us to join them for dinner after the reception. I know my limits (and Mike’s) we were both in need of a taxi and bed by then.

On Wednesday of this week, I met up with Sue for my belated birthday lunch. We went to a Riverside hotel and sat in the sun watching the world and the boats go by, it was very relaxing. She bought me the most lovely Lemon Lavender, its hard to describe, so will have to photograph it later, it’s so unusual.

We also had a delightful dinner at Colin and Alan’s and I had a Hawaiian Girls Night at Caz’s beautiful new home last night. I had Sex on the Beach. Twice!!!! It’s been a very busy time.

Today I will collect a sample rose from the florist and then take it down on the train to Plymouth, which should be interesting, I’ve never done such a long train journey. Then I will be driving my new car home. If all goes to plan, Mike will ring for an Indian Meal to be delivered, probably around 10pm. ………Phew!!!!!

Leaving On A Jet Plane.

I’m going to get an entry in now, I have lots to do in the next few days and then on Sunday I’m off to Germany, which should be my last solo, jet-setting trip, as Catherine should be back in England in August.

I now have TWO, new chickens. I went to pick them up on Saturday, I’ll let Isabella introduce them in her Blog. Chicken Run - The Great Escape

When I arrived at the collection point I gave my name and the lady in charge took me by the hand and led me away. She said she wanted to talk to me. I thought, she was going to say there was a mistake and I couldn’t have any girls after all. No. She wanted to ask if I would consider one, that was in a cage on her own, who had a slight injury. No pressure but she needed to go somewhere quiet and where she would have a bit of TLC. I’d only spoken on the phone but I was obviously marked down as a little eccentric who would go the extra mile in looking after the birds….Yes, I expect that is me.

So, that was Letitia (Letty). She has a sort of bruise, or blood clot in her one shoulder but she seems OK, so hopefully, whatever it is, it will clear up and she won’t have any problems with it.

The other girl that came with us is Josephine (Josie). Both the new girls are as dark as Isabella is fair . I use family names for my girls, these two new ones are going back into my Family Tree.

Unlike Isabella, the new girls seemed much stronger and more clued up. They knew how to feed and drink and I’ve had an egg every day from both. Their eggs are browner than Isabella’s.

I have a poached egg every morning for breakfast but even so, the fridge is quickly filling with eggs. It will be good to be able to give away the surplus again , as most people are very appreciative of such fresh, wholesome, free range eggs. Apart from Chris of course, who when offered the choice between a supermarket egg and one from my garden, he preferred the supermarket one because mine had come from a chicken’s bottom…..err, HELLO Chris, where do you think the supermarket ones came from? Grew in the box?????

After my chicken liberation run, I popped up to  the Black Country to have a look at an Open Weekend on the canal, the weather was not very good but it did reawaken my longing for buying a Narrowboat.

 

There's something so special about canal bridges, whether brick

 

or metal. 

The last remaining chimneys of our industrial heritage look beautiful alongside a canal, built to transport their products.

Whenever there's an event, there's a Traction Engine.

 

 

                      ****************************

Something evil lurks in my garden, its very small, not much larger than a pinhead and it bites me and when it does I have blood running from the bite. How can something so small do so much damage? Even worse is the reaction. I got several of these bites on my left leg on Sunday. For some reason they prefer my left leg, maybe they are Catholic (left footers), I don’t know but they’ve made a right mess of it. I have one normal leg and one elephant leg.

I thought I’d pull on my old suede boots today, as protection from the biters when I went down to see the chickens but I couldn’t even get my foot in. So off to the doctor’s went I and now I’m taking three sorts of tablets, marvellous!!!!

I’m planning to go to a book signing on Saturday. It’s a new book about my beloved Rowley Regis, I think I read there are 300 photos in it and its called Haystacks to Chimney Stacks, I’m presuming its charting some of the progression from poor agricultural land to industry and its accompanying waste lands. I'm supposed to be meeting my friend there and having lunch, she’s from Manchester but apart from that she’s very nice.

(Sorry Jan).

Not much else going on so will update when I get back from Germany, with new pictures of Isabella (grandchild, not chicken).

Before I go, some garden shots.

I don't remember planting that!

Morgan having a close friendship with Catherine's Olive Tree.

 

While I was busy getting bitten I took this of Merlin

and then later, I caught him on my bed, he looked so comfy I didn’t like to disturb him.

Tags: Chickens, Merlin, Morgan, Canals, The Black Country, Traction Engines