Wednesday 14 October 2020

Mid October, Then and Now

 Short of ideas again so a look back at what I was blogging about in the middle of October in years gone by, a useful idea to remember whenever nothing much is happening

 

 Going all the way back to the first year of my blog.......

Monday, 14 October 2013

This is a good one so I'll include in full.....................

Multi Tasking on Monday

Does anyone ever ask you what you do when you are at home all day?


This is what I would tell them today.

I started by putting the eggs out for sale on the stand and then went round to let out 3 lots of chickens, give them fresh water and collect the first of the eggs. While I was outside, Him Outside was actually indoors lighting the Rayburn and having his breakfast, then putting the squash and pumpkins out for sale.After that he washed up while I wiped. Next I started the bread and while the dough hook was doing it's job peeled some cooking apples . Him Outside went out to take down the netting and gate from the front of the hay shed ( where we moved the chickens out of yesterday).

 Then we had a coffee.

 While the bread was doing it's first rising we got all the shed cleaned out with a nice lot of straw and poop wheel-barrowed around to add to the compost heaps.He finished the sweeping out of the hay shed while I went back indoors and made a batch of pastry ( It's OK I did wash my hands!). The pastry became an apple and a-little-bit-of-mincemeat pie, two baked blind quiche bases (one to eat and one to freeze) and an unbaked flan case also for the freezer. By which time the bread was ready for its knocking back and while it was doing its 2nd rise I baked the quiche bases, cooked the pie, softened an onion, pepper and courgette to make a filling for the quiche and washed up.
Him Outside was still outside but had moved around to the old campsite toilets to start emptying it prior to dismantling the inside.(It will in time be another chicken shed, if we can shift it without it falling apart!) While the bread and quiche were cooking I was sorting out all the things  that he had brought in from the loos, taking some clothes off the airer that's over the Rayburn and sweeping the kitchen floor.

Lunchtime and a sit down and blog reading.

After lunch he washed up then went off to borrow a large trailer big enough to put the tractor on and I wiped up,collected the eggs, picked raspberries, pulled up some beetroot, cleaned and boxed the eggs.
He got back, loaded the tractor onto the trailer and we had a cuppa. Then he was off again with the tractor to take it to get the hydraulics repaired ( properly this time we hope). I got some potatoes peeled and cabbage prepared and put the beetroot to cook on the Rayburn. Then I went outside to check the stand to see what had sold, check the chicken sheds for late eggs and to pick a few more cooking apples and bag them up ready for tomorrow.

He returned home again and after lighting the woodburner we watched Countdown on 4+1.( Some of the time he watched with his eyes shut - Not asleep he said!) He then sent an email to advertise the things we have for sale in the Suffolk Smallholders newsletter and I started this blog.

Time to go outside again to make sure the chickens have fresh water in their sheds before they go to bed and to bring in the things from the stall.

Dinner and Eggheads,Strictly takes Two,Washing up.Wiping Up. Shut up the chickens, University Challenge, Only Connect. Reading. Bed.
Another day gone!

 

Mid October 2014

Colin was spending some days in hospital after chest pains. This was a year after he'd been suddenly poorly and had stents inserted. He looks very well in this photo and although one blood test showed a heart attack there were no other signs and after a week in hospital having tests he was then home again.It was named the "Hardly a Heart Attack!"
The Thank-You is to all the blog readers who sent him Get Well Soon wishes
  


 October 13th 2015......................Still at the smallholding, although it was up for sale so we could downsize and travel - That was just before we knew about the  Non Hodgkins Lymphoma.

We'd been given some huge Quinces that we didn't really need, as we had some on our own trees, so I displayed them in an old basket on the windowsill hoping they'd give off a nice scent.

 

In the middle of October 2016  (we had moved to a small bungalow in Ipswich)we had just changed our plans - again....................This is the whole post.........

Plan A June 2015 - December 2015
Sell the smallholding, buy a small bungalow in town, use the caravan to visit all over the country, decide where to buy, perhaps Wales, and rent out bungalow in town.

Plan B January 2016
After diagnoses of Non Hodgkin Lymphoma, live in small bungalow in town until Colin has recovered then use caravan to travel and decide where to live perhaps Wales. Rent out bungalow in town.

Plan C  Suddenly October 2016
Spot lovely home  for sale in Suffolk countryside, abandon idea of ever living in Wales due to ongoing health problems, the wet weather there and arrival of 2 grandchildren. Make a cash  offer on house - which gets accepted. Put small bungalow on market.
All family cheering that we are not going to Wales.

Yes, after just 7 months in town we are heading back out into 'the sticks'.

We hadn't really planned to move again so quickly but when we spotted a house in Mid Suffolk on t'internet that looked really interesting, we went to look and it was just what we wanted. The sort of place we were looking for in Wales but without the rain and the hills!

So we are going to ignore the fact that Colin might have to have donated stem cells and more months of treatment. We shall ignore the fact that buying the house means we wipe out all savings and we'll have hardly anything to live on until we sell this bungalow and Col gets work pension in March 2017. We will ignore the fact that he may only be in remission for a short while and I could be on my own in the middle of nowhere and we will just go for it.
 When it comes to house buying we've always gone with gut feeling (For instance taking 2 small children to live in a caravan while we restored a very old semi-derelict property in 1983 and moving across Suffolk to the completely run down smallholding in 1992) 

The back of my  cottage up the end of the lane

 

In Mid October 2017.................................

We were at the Auction in Diss getting some trees for the "Birthday Wood". This is Col waiting to bid

( the birthday wood was Colins idea for using money he was given for his 60th birthday bash)

Waiting to bid

 

 In Mid October  2018....................................

5 Months after Colin died. I wrote about always  calling  Sumac "The Vinegar Tree" right from being little and having some in the garden by our play-shed and only finding out a few years ago that it's used as a spice with the flavour of vinegar.


 

Last Year In Mid October  2019................

I picked up the Bee spotters guide at the Eye Green Fair. I put it somewhere safe to use this year for Bee spotting, somewhere so safe that I couldn't find it!


And Now in 2020 - these old blog posts have reminded me that ........

We'd talked about me being alone here and  I did end up on my own out in "the sticks".

 Colin's Birthday wood isn't as big as it should have been due to 3 dry summers and it still shocks me to think that someone who had hardly had a day off work due to illness should  retire from work, have heart problems and stents put in and then get the dreaded diagnosis "treatable not curable" all within 6 years.

The Sumac or Vinegar  tree out the front of the house here is looking very sad, I reckon it's outgrown itself and only has leaves now on the tips of its few branches (another thing to get Brother-in-Law to cut down).

 Looking at the photo of quinces I can see the old Bramley that we had at the smallholding still covered in Apples in mid October whereas on  the tree here this year the apples were ready and falling before the end of September.

AND I've now found the Bee Spotting Chart............Will I remember where it is next summer?


Back Tomorrow 
Sue



41 comments:

  1. Gosh, some bittersweet moments in this post Sue. Gut feelings about houses are good ones to follow though. Probably for the best you never moved to Wales - it is indeed WET! You would notice it all the more coming from the dry side of the country too.

    I am glad you are happy to live where you do now and are laying down a fresh layer of happy memories, especially with your grandchildren.

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    1. I'm glad we moved here even though there are several things about this place that may cause problems sometime

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  2. Wow. A real life rollercoaster. It's getting wetter and windier in Wales, but it's still wonderful. Although I am no longer on Facebook, it still throws up memories and I look back with many mixed emotions, as I am sure you have while putting this together. You've come through so much, and I bet, like me, you wondered at the time how you will make it to tomorrow, never mind any further, but somehow we do.

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    1. I would love to live by the wonderful coasts of Mid Wales but would miss all the family too much now

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  3. Oh, Sue, what an evocative post. You were amazing then and you are even more amazing now after all those bitter sweet experiences. I'm glad you both followed your heart and moved to where you are now - you seem do happy there, despite past events, and are creating a whole load of new happinesses to reflect on in future years.
    And I still think he was a real looker. Wow!
    xx

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    1. Thank you - He was the handsomest man ever! Although I may be biased.

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  4. It is interesting to look back at decisions we made years ago, and see that often things do not quite turn out as expected. But I am so glad for you in your Suffolk cottage, and I'm sure the family are especially pleased you're not far away in Wales. Col would be proud of all your achievements. I do hope that one day I will get to the end of the lane and visit

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    1. Much as I love the West Coast of Wales, I'm very glad we didn't move

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  5. Sometimes it is good to look back and take stock of how you ended up today. Though there is sadness, happy memories have been collected along the way.X

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    1. Many more happy years than sad ones - thank goodness

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  6. An interesting post. It's funny how life changes things that happen to us. Both my husband and and I were always going to sell up (from Heathrow are) and life in Suffolk and then my grandson was born, 8 months later my husband died so I stayed in the same house for 55 years and now 2 years later I moved to be nearer to my family,
    Have you ever thought about writing a book Sue or printing your Blog out, it will be interesting fir the grandchikdren has time goes by.
    Enjoy your day Sue.
    Hazel c uk 🌈🌈🌈

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    1. We just have to take whatever gets thrown at us and do the best in the circumstances.

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  7. I sometimes do this Sue - bitter sweet but like you and Col - we were very happy and nothing can do away with our happy years together.

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    1. It's good to remember and the blog is so useful for that

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  8. It's good to look back and take stock of things isn't it. How decisions made have worked out for the best, or sometimes not. The photo of Colin made me tear up, and I'm typing this with a real lump in my throat ... you got me.

    It also reminds me how long I've been following your progress as I remember all of this so well, hasn't the time gone so quickly. I should do a similar post now I'm about to embark on yet another move.

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    1. I never thought I'd still be blogging so many years later and with te same people reading!

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  9. Looking back can either be very sad or a celebration of appreciating the good and coping with the bad. I believe it's our own choice to a great extent.
    If you tell us where you've put the bee chart then you can to look back, read and remember. We won't come and pinch it, honest.

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  10. Quite the journey. It was good that you always went with your instinct and have no regrets about buying and selling. This was a bittersweet post and a good reminder to all of us to live in the moment. One never knows what is around the corner. -Jenn

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    1. We moved house so many times to get to the smallholding and never regretted any moves and even the year in town was useful

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  11. Aries never have a problem with making fast decisions or change, in fact that is the only way they do things. I am glad you are still in Suffolk so that we have been able to meet up. I am sure if you had moved to Wales you would be back here by now though.

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  12. I don’t blog but read you very regularly.
    This was such an thought provoking read, taking the same day each year.

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    1. It wasn't quite the same day as I didn't used to blog everyday to start with - but it's roughly the middle of October - 13th 14th, 15th or 16th

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  13. Like Anne, I'm not a blogger, but have read your blog every day for all these years, remembering every post above. So grateful to you for sharing your life with us distant followers. Always.

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    1. I just love writing and knowing people all around the world read it is the icing on the cake

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  14. What a journey life is for us. I remember most of this as I believe I started following your blog at the end of 2015. Blogs are good for looking back aren't they? Since I finally started a blog myself, I am beginning to see that it can be a good way of recording our lives. Much of this post is bittersweet but you should be proud of your ability to handle what life gives you and make the most of it along the way.

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    1. It's so interesting to look back at the blog - better than a diary because of the photos and comments.

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    2. I forgot to tell you - I love your new header photo! That is an amazing picture!

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  15. that's the best thing about blogging, being able to go back into the archives and see what you were doing the previous years.

    Nice to see a pic of Col.
    I'm glad you didn't move to Wales, mainly because I am totally biased about Suffolk ;o)

    I need a shake up with blogging. I have stuff to say, things to talk about, even things to show. Just haven't got the get up and go to get it done right now. Going off to have a chat with self and sort self out!
    x

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    1. I'm glad we stayed in Suffolk too- it is, after all, THE best county to live in!
      Hope you find the mojo to write again very soon

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  16. Life changes so quickly. I started reading your blog when Colin was feeling poorly, just before he was diagnosed. I felt so, so sad when you lost him. I almost felt like I knew both of you. It is wonderful to have these memories written down so that your children and grandchildren will have them, too.

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    1. Writing is therapeutic too, it helps to organise the brain!

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  17. I believe I started reading your blog after Col had died. Interesting to see the journey the two of you had to get where you are now.
    As for the sumac, around here they lose their leaves in fall. Are you sure that's not the case with yours?

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    1. Yes Sumacs are deciduous but what I meant was it has very few leaves at all and lots of bare bits

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  18. Your journey has been one of great joy and sadness. You have come through with flying colours..

    God bless.

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    1. Thank you Jackie- the last 8 years were certainly not exactly as planned

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  19. Gosh Sue! What a rollercoaster you've been on - there are times it must have felt like you were being tumbled in a washing machine! But you've stayed positive and given every bit of it your best shot, and that's certainly an inspiration to me. I agree that being close to family helps when the rough bits get too jaggered.

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    1. It's been the strangest and saddest part of my life in the last 8 years - getting through is the only way to go

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