under another sun

Occasional bursts of torrential rain from about 4 am -- and excited by more heavy rain this morning. Love it. I wore long trousers for the first time in months. My writing is still flowing and it would be absurd not to just go with that flow.  Lorraine took Enzo for a swimming lesson this morning, which he enjoyed greatly, and so did Lorraine. Other than writing, I made some more plum jam. I added too much pectin, so the jam is quite thick, but spreadable. It tastes good though, and I chucked in a cinnamon stick while it was cooking, and lots of lemon.  Then, as Enzo seems mad for transport, especially cars, we took him on a train ride to Lewes, which he quite enjoyed. We had a quick drink in a cafe, and brought him back again. He was very interested in the journey and in our fellow passengers.

I wrote freely and with some gusto this morning. At lunchtime Lorraine gave me a lift to the gym, before she collected Betty and they made off to Eastbourne to see a musical theatre show Project Mincemeat, which they both loved. I went to the gym, passing Blatchington Pond which is now drying out. It's like the sub Sahara here.  I enjoyed the gym, apart from  the giant shouldered man who arriving at the lat pull machine two seconds before me, squatted on it like a toad till I had to go. Bah. Home and relaxed. Chatted to Mum. Apparently it is going to be incredibly hot again next week. So we will have to take a view on what happens to our plan to meet at the White Bear on Wednesday.   Into the garden to pick plums from the tiny tree and this time they turned out to be worm free. The jam, three jars of it, set nicely and tasted fine. I always feel a real sense of achievement about making jam, I don't know why. Then I put together a quick stir fry and L and I happily scarfed...

A tetchy text from our next door neighbour, who has to wash his cars because of dust from our building work. The same neighbour whose house for the first two years of our stay was a building site, and we politely put up with months of dust, plastic waste, tools, etc coming over the fence, not to mention the constant noise and inconvenience. It made us both very angry.  I consciously had to calm down for the good of my health. He texted a bit later more politely and we replied to that one, deciding like Michelle Obama to go high when they go low.  I wanted to have some morning calm to write in, but I felt to irritable, so after speaking to Mum, I went off for an early walk. Seven miles in total today. I am now on a streak of fifteen days, and in the last seven days have walked over 40 miles. It feels good to be getting back to my old habits, and I am listening to audiobooks as I go, and my knee which had a moment a few months ago is holding up. Still on the biography of Muriel ...

Up and after two days of pubs, I prepared breakfast and thought about living in an enclosed monkish life contemplating and praying quietly. Lorraine a bit snuffly and coldy. Having eaten and doing some laundry we repaired to the garden and lurked in the open air. Another hot day, but the forecasts say rain is likely in a few days.    In the afternoon I went to Morrisons, bought some jam sugar with pectin, and a bar of chocolate for Lorraine, and then made off to various places where I'd seen blackberries on my travels. I picked a kilo of them, which doesn't sound much but takes plenty of time. The berry gods took their payment in thorn tips in my hands that are impossible to get out, and my shins being stung a good deal by stinging nettles. There is a glut of fruit this year, all a month too early and many of them dried up due to the climate crisis of a summer we have been having. So far August has seen 1% of the average rainfall for the south east of England. I noticed big ju...

Now that the schools are going back, the weather was warm and sunny. After Lorraine had eaten breakfast with Sam, I went off a-foraging. Armed with Tupperware, I went to the first of the places I identified the day before -- but did not need to go further afield, as I managed to get just over a kilo of blackberries from the first of my sites. Blackberries accomplished I found the crab apple tree on the side of the hill, and picked up early fallen but fine apples. Their sourness shrivels your face into a repulsive puckering but they are bursting with apple flavour.  Walking home I thought how a small but judicious addition or small crab apple pieces would add not only pectin, but a welcome note of tartness to the sweet niceness of the blackberry. This would be a jam that didn't mutter hi to you as you ate it, but bellow a full blown Howdy ! on your tastebuds .    As I approached home, I noticed how tingly my hands were with all the nettle stings on my hands, not to mentio...