Progress this week

Dining room, which had three cream walls and one wall with some very dark patterned wallpaper, now has four cream walls

 Old defunct dishwasher removed from kitchen, new dishwasher installed and ready to roll

Made a start on weeding and demossing the brickwork paths outside the back of the house

and had time for some relaxation, too.

A Kitten called Betty, more of

Subjects 11-20.

11) Something purple, 12) You!, 13) Broken, 14) Roads, 15) On the shelf, 

16) Messy, 17) Symmetrical, 18) Glasses, 19) A landmark, 20) A face thats not.

Purple bathroom

You! (me)

Broken

All roads lead to Frome

On the shelf 

Messy

Symmetrical 

Glasses

A landmark (Cley Hill, centre, distant)

A face thats not 

A Kitten Called Betty . . .

. . . is the rather unusual name of another monthly photographic challenge in which I participate. It's a group of photographers, one or two professional but mostly keen amateurs, on Facebook - if you are on FB and would like to join in just "friend" me or leave a comment after this post, and I'll ask for an invitation to be sent to you. Sometimes the subjects are general, sometimes they are specific, but the point of the group is to have fun, whether taking the photos or just viewing those taken by others.

This month we had a different subject for each day, and rather than show the whole 30 in one go, I'll just put up the first ten for a start.

The subjects are: 1) Red, white and blue, 2) A crown, 3) A flag, 4) A wave, 

5) Something huge, 6) Candid, 7) Shoes, 8) Words, 9) Bubbles, 10) Work,
and here are my entries

June Scavenger Hunt

Posting a bit early this month, as I have all my pictures ready and waiting, with thanks once again to Kathy, at Postcards from the PP, for the list.

 1) SLEEP - Cassie doesn't look very comfortable though, does she?

2) ON THE EDGE - on our garden fence, looking rather imperious 

3) BEFORE we cut the grass

4) AFTER we cut the grass

5) SYMMETRY conservatory doors

6) OUT OF REACH - crisp packets on top of the cupboard

7) CLOSE - crisp packets (empty) in the bin

8) AT NIGHT (after my usual bedtime)

9) DIAMOND

10) CROWN

11) BUNTING

12) MAJESTY - the QEII bridge over the Thames at Dartford

Climbing Cley Hill

Cley Hill is about 2 miles out of town on the Frome Road

There is a small car park just off the road with a signpost to show the way.

Follow the farm track and you are soon climbing, only gradually at first.

At the bottom of the hill proper you pass through a cattle-gate where there is information about the history of the hill

Near the top, its actually a lot steeper than it looks

The views from the top are amazing, and well worth the 20 minute climb - south east over Warminster . . .

. . .westwards over Frome

. . . northeastwards over Little Cley Hill and on towards Westbury.

On the way back down now with Longleat Forest in front of us.

There are supposed to be several species of orchid growing here, I didn't spot any, so here is a wild rose instead.

We chose the driest day of the week for our walk, and we were extremely lucky that it was also not windy, so a very pleasant outing.

Two months in . . .

. . . and what have we done? Well, lots really. In no particular order, except as they pop into my head, this is what we have achieved since we moved here on 24th April.

1. We have curtains up at all the windows, and net curtains up at all the windows at the front of the house. Most of the curtains that we brought with us from Surrey, which were in store in Devizes because they were too short for any of the windows, have been used here, nets are newly purchased, and really need to be taken down and washed to get rid of the creases, but thats for another day.

2. Rog has installed an internal network behind a firewall, the BT cable has been redirected to his office, which is up and running, as is my studio (see previous blog post), we have an internet point in the guest room (currently Oli's room for the duration of the summer until he goes back to uni in September) and a spare in the snug.

3. Electronic, all singing, all dancing, tag-recognising catflap fitted to the back door, and ordinary everyday cat flap fitted between kitchen and utility room.

4. Washing machine and tumble-dryer installed - very urgently during the first few days.

5. Garage sort-of sorted, so that we can at least get to everything thats in there.

6. Almost all boxes unpacked.

7. Windows (all double glazed) have had the benefit of a service, some of them were slightly ill-fitting and a couple had broken handles, now they are all OK.

8. The sofa, which wouldn't fit through the door to the lounge and was temporarily shoved into the dining room, has been relocated into the snug, which is now very . . well . . . snug.

9. The conservatory has become an up-and-running greenhouse, where I am growing radishes, lettuce, spring onions and strawberries, I have a  couple of old grey redundant office desks as work benches, with pedestal drawer units under for storing seeds, tools etc. and an old plastic shelf unit for storing pots, pot-holders, flower vases, organic sprays etc.

10. Container veg growing outside - potatoes, standard and baby tomatoes, runner beans, dwarf beans, carrots.

11. New front door and side-glazing units chosen and ordered, new integrated dishwasher chosen and ordered.

12. Garden shed thoroughly cleaned out, swept, scrubbed and filled.

13. Next-door-neighbours thoroughly vetted and found to be a really nice, friendly, normal-type family.

14. First overnight guests entertained and despatched on their way to Cornwall.

15. Two hill walks completed, the first was Battlesbury Hill, pictures here the second was Cley Hill, which will most likely be my next blog.

16. Registered with new doctors surgery and dental surgery, returned to Bath hospital and cleared of the ear infection that bugged me all through the winter months.

17. Made a trip back to Surrey over the Jubilee weekend to catch up with two older sons, D.I.Ls and grandchildren.

18. Found one or two decent pubs within walking distance, and had a couple of mystery tours around the extended area, through some really lovely countryside in the Wylye Valley and Longleat Forest.

. . . and gosh I'm sure we've done lots more as well, but making this list has worn me out, so I'm off to prepare chicken stir fry for tea, if I remember I'll post up some photos tomorrow.

The studio tour

Rog has finished wiring up the internal network system, so my computer has now been moved upstairs into the studio, and at long last, and for the very first time EVER I have all my stuff in the same place, and (almost) tidy. Come with me and I'll give you a guided tour.

Firstly here is my shelf unit which covers almost all of one wall

Just round the corner on the wall opposite the window we have my book shelves and the stationery cupboard, the book shelves hold my very special collection of old hardbacks, which is why there is a blue cover in front, to protect the books from sunlight and dust (I really would like to have a glass-fronted bookcase, but that will have to wait). You can also see the "green" painting, and above the red shelf my "sky" pictures.

This is my "old book"collection, childhood favourites, some very old family books, and some special purchases

 

Here is my work-bench in front of the window 

 

 My paperback book collection, along with my craft books and a few more hardback favourites

    

Fabrics

  

 Old diaries, folders, notebooks etc.

 

Old Phoenix card stock, boxes of photographs (from the pre-digital days) and general stuff

 

 Knitted and crocheted stock

   

Yarn stock

   

and last but not least my good old-fashioned desk with PC, monitor, speakers, keyboard and printer

  

 I hope you have enjoyed the tour.