Sunday, 3 December 2023

Frost, snow and now rain




 Well, winter has decided to put on a show and we have had stunning hoar frosts (and fortunately dry lanes).  Last night it snowed a bit (so little it's not worth photographing) and now it is raining, which will make the roads a bit slick, especially if it freezes again.  A good day to stay put and tackle the ironing mountain (nearly all king size bedding!) The weather unfortunately put paid to a visit from Danny & Co as I couldn't guarantee either getting to them or getting them to the station today, as the weather forecast showed wet weather coming in, which when it met up with the very cold weather here (minus 7 yesterday) may well fall as snow.  We didn't go to the Antiques Fair for the same reason and Keith wasn't feeling up to it anyway.

Sorry for the power lines but you get the general idea.


        Keith is struggling as he had his medication upped when we saw the Consultant, and it made him barely able to move yesterday - NOT a good situation.  The PD nurse had phoned up on Friday to say how much was he on? REALLY? She clearly didn't believe me and phoned the Consultant. Even the Pharmacist phoned the Consultant to query the timings so we have dropped back to the old dose until we see the PD nurse this week. 


Finally I got the labels on the Hedgerow Jelly I made last week . . .



Another of Pippi's hunting successes - never seen one before - it is a Water Shrew, though apparently they are often found a long way from water.




My friend D in Dorset has just bought herself this book (only a nicer copy, in hardback).  She was saying about Herman Lea's photographs taken for this book - which was Thomas  Hardy's idea.  The photographs made £24,000 at auction.  History under the hammer.


For many years, I had a little colour picture of that very view in Puddletown on my office wall.  I think it got tidied away in the move and I will try and find it again.





17 comments:

  1. Lovely photo of the frost on the trees. Hope you don't get snow yet - like they have in the Lake District with so many stranded overnight. Bit too early for that much I think.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Fortunately just a few flakes of snow. We are several hills away from town, and above the snowline too, so it doesn't take much to maroon us.

      Delete
  2. Just an inch of snow here, but a lot more north and south of us. The roads are clear, but like you we are wary of ice. Staying warm indoors!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't think we even had that much - just a sprinkling, thank heavens.

      Delete
  3. Shrews are fascinating! So small and fast..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But apparently not fast enough in this case!

      Delete
  4. I discovered quite recently that far from the madding crowd is a line from Thomas Gray’s “Elegy written in a country churchyard”. Hold on while I find the context, here we are: “Far from the madding crowd’s ignoble strife/Their sober wishes never learn’d to stray/Along the cool sequestered vale of life/They kept the noiseless tenor of the way”. Lovely programme on Radio 3 at the moment about Hardwick Hall and Bess and the furniture. They’ve just been talking about the eglantine table as the eglantine rose was Bess’ symbol apparently. My imagination is running riot as I leap from grand Elizabethan houses to damp unloved 18th century country churches. Wet and miserable outside today and I have no desire to join the throngs of Christmas shoppers. Instead I will enjoy the last of the autumn colour from the warmth of the garden room. From where I’m sitting on a Victorian dining chair made even more comfortable by a sheepskin fleece bought from Guildford Farmer’s market the day T had his driving theory test I can see Rosa Vanessa Bell shining out against the golden brown of the beech hedge. We’re now at Kedleston Hall, an 18th century Robert Adam house with its grand marble hall and all the Curzon, Viceroy of India memorabilia. I remember visiting both these houses, I expect you have too? Sarah x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Did I know that? If I did, I've long forgotten it! I rarely listen to Radio 3 (Radio 4 for me) but it sounds like I missed a good programme. I'll download it on here tomorrow. I didn't know that the Eglantine rose was her symbol - I know Ann Boleyn's badge was a Leopard, and I think a Kestrel? No - just checked, a white Falcon with white and red roses in its talons.

      Having been virtually nowhere (bar Llandod) for over 2 months even the throngs of Christmas shoppers sound welcome.

      Like you we are on our last few roses here - I picked a big spray with 6 buds of a yellow rose that has loitered all summer. It was left in a planter when we arrived, but happier in the ground now. SadlyTam and I never went to Kedleston or Hardwick Hall when Tam was in Sheffield. Chatsworth delighted though.

      Delete
  5. No snow here, just slushy hail and rain mixed. Still bally cold!
    I am sorry Keith is continuing to have difficulty. As a friend said to me, it's horrible that what we take for one thing gives unpleasant and unwanted side effects: we can't win.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad you didn't get snow. A friend in Fishguard showed me some of them snowed in (2010 probably) - gosh they had some drifts.

      Indeed we take movement for granted and every drug seems to have a side effect.

      Delete
  6. I love seeing the frost on trees, it seems as if everything is covered with sparkling diamonds. We still don't have any snow, but that is looking to change this coming week. Just glad I have the snow tires on the vehicle now.

    God bless.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's a true winter wonderland but it was desperately cold to be out and about for long. No snow tyres on our car - we just stay put.

      Delete
  7. It doesn't sound like the consultant was very helpful. I'm sorry for that. I hope the reduction in dose helps Keith. Stay snug inside! It does look cold there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, we will see what the PD nurse has to say - she knows Keith much better. Snug inside is good right now!

      Delete
  8. I am surprised that the consultant turned out to be someone with questionable judgement. I've been reading a lot about the winter weather over there. Stay warm!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She judged as Keith presented on the day - after 2 hours in the car and wheelchair, nothing to drink since taking his pills first thing, and only a banana for breakfast (his choice and we couldn't get up any earlier - it was a 10 a.m. appt.) He couldn't turn and really struggled to move so looked worse than usual.

      Delete
    2. Oh and his next pills were due as well so the others had worn off completely.

      Delete