Thursday

Good morning, everyone.  After a very dull morning yesterday, the sun came out and the humidity lifted, making quite a pleasant afternoon.  Today looks as if it's going to be nice.  The sun is trying to shine and there's a fresh breeze a-blowin'!  I have a front window and the back French window open and it's freshening the house nicely.

For all the dullness yesterday, it was a good drying day.  I got three loads out, dried and in again and then ironed.  Lovely!  Today I have bedding to wash and it's perfect for drying again.

I drove out yesterday for a number of things.  First I filled up with petrol - always a bit ouch but it has to be done.  Then I drove on to a garden centre to got bird peanuts, some garden lights and a rather lovely calla lily (as a thank you gift) before then stopping off in Writtle to get a birthday present.

Jeff turned up nice and early and by the time he had done his hour, he'd nearly finished covering that little patch at the front.  He will finish it off next week.  Thanks to his help, it's all looking very nice now and will look even nicer once I have attacked the flower bed with my new hoe again.  Those weeds don't half fight back!

The garden lights, mentioned above are the spike in the ground ones, not the twinkle on a flex ones and it was a set of six, two for each of my little beds.  As it got dark and they lit up, it really did look nice and I'm glad I got them.  The one I already had in one of the beds now lights up the front by the door and that looked nice too.

I did my ten items clear out of the shed - more than ten, in fact - although it doesn't look much different yet.  It won't for a while and then, suddenly, there will be daylight and I can start actually organising things better.  I stopped because the black bin was full.  Today is bin day so there will be plenty of space for rubbish again; in fact, I think they've already come and gone.

It was Slimming World in the evening which wasn't nearly as bad as I had feared.  Just one pound on, which I will accept with thankfulness and move on!

Today is a bit busy but not too bad.
I have been invited to Infants' Sports Day this morning.  I well remember when I was in charge of organising this, the dread with which I watched the sky for rain clouds and I remember, with some amusement, how a gaggle of infants gathered together on the playground over lunch chanting:
Rain, rain, go away
It's our sports day
This was when we held in in the afternoon and it didn't work - the heavens opened!
At least Dee won't have that worry on her plate today.  It is beautiful.

After that it's home again for more shed sorting.  Fifteen minutes this time. 

I also have some tuition planning to do and it is pottery this evening.  I should be glazing the bowls, both the not-leaves-any-more bowl and the bird bowl and I think I would like Alex to show me how to make a slab pot with a cardboard tube.  Time is short so it probably won't get finished until next term but that's OK.  I have a sort of 'picture' of ivy leaves on the outside or, maybe, some holes through.  It's a bit vague so I will need to rough something out on paper.
Also, I want to make some more plates of various kinds - I find my way of working is to try something and then make more until I have really got the idea, like the coasters.  The last one is so much better than the first one.  Perhaps I could make some 'rustic' pasta bowls in teracotta and glaze them in a transparent something.  I need to talk about this to Alex, I think.

Anyway - should be a good day and I'm looking forward to it very much.  I hope yours is good too.  xx