The Lane and SUSPENSE!!

Last night we walked the dogs down the Lane by us. It connects two other lanes, but only a daring tractor would try to drive it, mostly its used by horses and walkers, and not many of those. Its a useful way to get around the countryside, there a lot of these old 'boreens' although many are sunk deep into the land through centuries of use, and inaccessible.
Sorry the photos are a bit dark, we were at the bottom of the valley and it was that in between light when the camera doesn't know whether to use flash or not (and I don't either!)
This is the Lane, with two puffed dogs- its neither wide nor surfaced!

...our house from the Lane, its actually built on the level and not about to slide down the hill!

Think this is an old 'sweat house', 9th to 15th C use, and since then used as huts and livestock shelters. There are a lot dotted around the west, another one is directly beside our house which led to the archaeologists' suspicion that our house was actually built in a 'rath', the second level of a Stone Age Fort. Not proved mind!

Does anyone know what these little flowers are? The bells are less than half an inch big.

Wild orchid! Isn't it a beaut!

This is one of the water manhole covers from town- they are all over the place, I've always thought the design was lovely! Nothing like a camera-mad woman on the loose!!

When Mount St Helens erupted in the '80s we had fantastic sunsets- I'm wondering whether the same will happen with the unpronounceable Iceland one? This sunset was over the weekend.

So many lovely comments yesterday- thank you so much! Its comforting to know other folks have yuck-awful weeks too: Here's to a GREAT week for ALL of us!!

As to what Sos was making with that disgusting mess- I didn't realise I'd forgotten to say...but since you've pointed it out I'm going to leave you in suspense until Thursday now when I'm going to her College end of term Exhibition! I'll take photos then and show you, I think you'll be wowed and agree the mess was worth it!!

That'n'This'n'This'n'That!

Before I begin I would just like to say that I did start another post since Thursday but the Hub needed the computer to do Church Accounts so I had to give way gracefully. He reckons Church Accounts have priority over a mere hobby, like blogging, but....well....I think we'll agree to differ on that one!

It was a sort of messy week altogether.

Some weeks gobble you up and spit you out,

some weeks seem to get stuck in a time warp and take forever,

some rare weeks are productive,

and some weeks run you down, jump on you and then keep going without you.

Last week was of the last variety. I don't think I achieved anything at all!

Sos came home for a few days, which was lovely, and proceeded to take up the whole kitchen floor with painting fabric and plastic:

...and the range with drying the fabric; how many times did I forget those weren't tea towels and go to wipe my hands???

Of course the dogs walked over wet paint so now I've to clean up reptile-wing-coloured paw-prints. Ho hum...Then she threw me out of the sewing room to sew things together and 'experiment'.

Thursday evening I went out with the dogs so they could run with the wind and so I could poke around in the hedgerows to see what was coming up. Lots, is the answer!

...more wild violets than I've ever seen:

...bluebells, at last!

...gorse, whin or furze, depending on which part of the country you hail from- here its whin. Have you ever noticed that the flowers have a very delicate coconut scent?

...and finally, as promised, the MAY! You really know winter is past when the May blossoms, although it does look like a dusting of snow on the hedgerows from a distance!

So, everywhere out is looking just lovely!

Also as promised, here's the 'Retro Baby' quilt in progress:It has borders now and is waiting to be fleece backed, which I've not done before, but thought I'd try.

On Friday the new Permaculture Magazine came through the letterbox, which is always disastrous as it gives me so many IDEAS! This is particularly inspiring issue- the Hub is not a happy camper!

And yesterday I played for Morning Service and then took myself and a stuffed-with-cold-BBug over to a cafe to wait while the Hub went off and took another Service, which is what happens when you only have one car. However, this is the view of the day we sat before:Not much of a hardship really, huh?!

Before I finish, a 'funny' for you:

Heckety, looking at computer screen with Google logo: Did you know it's Tchaikowsky's birthday today? He's 170!

Sos: That's nice.

Heckety: He's dead.

Sos: Shame.

Now to me that implies that a) I'm very boring, or b) someone's listening skills are a bit off...

Hmmmm....Have an attentive day folks!!