Another week flashes by - as do the clouds and rain

It seems as if the weeks are just sailing by in a foggy mist of headlines on coronavirus, the ability to open up and instantly close down areas that need to locked back down. Leicester being the main culprit, due to the high proportion of mixed families living together in the same home, and the proverbial sweat shops, making cheap clothing for the high street stores. Its a crazy world, and everyone has a different slant on it. As per always, hindsight is a wonderful thing. 

We are just so fortunate to be in Innellan with the benefit of the Clyde and a ferry to keep the marauders and party goers away.

We keep our heads down and stay busy in one way or another. The garden has this attraction that lures you in. A great leveller, especially when you spend most your time preparing the ground to accept plants and trees. Although these past weeks have been involved with the hard landscaping, the timber erection, moving gravel, laying blocks for ponds and paving for paths. Along with the constant battle with the pheasants who insist on coming up squawking for food, only to return whilst we are in bed to demolish my moss mounds.

The daily saga of replacing the moss to our Japanese mountain range. Use your imagination please. It is a range if you are a small person, especially if you are from the race in Lilliput, in Gulliver's travel's. Showing my age now.

I move on. Eventually topped up with more moss and decided to top the moss with chicken wire. Only took all morning, as Judith was kind enough to point out. But low and behold, success. For the past week they have left the moss in one piece. That's what l call a result.

More importantly, you cant even see the mesh from a few feet away. It's amazing what pleases certain people.

As l keep harping on, the weather has been rather unsettled for the past month, in fact its been bloody awful. As you can see from the storm radar image the other day.

We are the blue dot, just under the yellow and orange bit that indicates the heaviest of rain. 

The view on our deck reinforced the message.

So as it was so bad we headed out in the car. The first time in over four months that we have been allowed to travel more than to the supermarket. Scotland having a five mile maximum travel distance ban in place.

So we shot off to Loch Fyne to buy oysters for tea and have a takeaway meal from the Loch Fyne oyster restaurant. And of course pop into the tree nursery next door. A real treat, even though the weather was rather overcast and miserable. 

Although, anyone who has ever ventured to Scotland, we often have four seasons in one day. 

It was throwing it down as we left Innellan, but it started to clear up as we drove along side Loch Eck, yet a little misty. That adds to the mood of mystique.

By the time we got to Loch Fyne the sun was out. And so were the tourists. The road was chocker block with Audi , BMW and Porsche 4x4s. The road is the main tourist route from Glasgow to the West Coast. As was the carpark at the restaurant. Masks on, and keeping a good 2m away from everyone else, we purchased our fish and chips and demolished them in the comfort and safety of our car. They were glorious. Just a pity that 50% of the people ordering takeaway were not masked. Even though the restaurant was giving them away free. People.

partly demolished fish and chips

Popped into the shop and purchased 2 dozen oysters, 12 for tea and 12 for the weekend. Such a treat.

Walked around the tree centre, but unfortunately nothing we wanted. Will have to order them on line. Looking for a ornamental cherry "Yoshino", Japanese Mapel, Mock Orange, Multi stemmed Tibetan Cherry and a Acer Palamatum Dissectum Seiryu ( in other words a spindle tree)

Then a gentle return journey home, stopping off at Morissons supermarket for our three weekly click and collect shop. We go out to our local corner shop on shore road to get our basics. Need to try and support your local community shop, off licence and post office.

In the evening we settled down to an appero of a very dry martini. A gin based one for a change. Delicious.

Then a dozen oysters with freshly baked bread loaded with salty butter and a glorious bottle of something chilled.An Australian Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. 

Finished of with coffee and donuts. What a treat. 

Next day its back to normal. Its a fast day. Bread and water. Not quite, but only 400 calls for Judith and 500 for me.

We have been  cooking quite a bit lately. Judith has been working through all the cook books. And the results have been rather amazing. I come in from work to be offered all manner of delights. Some really unusual and unexpected dishes.

We had Gnocchi last night. It was called Gnocchi Al Forno. Sounds very posh, but it was very straight forward. Morrisons Gnocchi with a sauce made from a roux, blue cheese, sauted chopped onions and florets of broccoli. All mixed together and cooked in the oven for 20 minutes.  Truly magnificent.

In fact the photo does not do it justice. Comes from the £1 pound recipe book.

As and when the weather permits, we get out into the garden, finishing off the hard landscaping bits of the garden. Still need to find a good garden centre, yet it may be better to just order off line.

Enclosed a section of the area under the decking, fitting a couple of doors to enable us an area to keep all our gardening equipment, barrows etc.

Used up all the stone paving on paths, after which we moved the stone pebbles down from the top. 5 tons, barrowed down the muddy slope. Or should l say slid.

In fact the skids take all the weight. As long as you can keep your balance. A bit like the Cresta run, replacing ice with slippery clay slick.

Opened the laptop up this morning and this image came up of a glacier in Alaska. Absolutely gorgeous, such wilderness. I want to be there, now. But that's not going to happen for a long time. Canada is keeping everyone out still, and with the virus spiking in many states in the USA l cant see them opening up soon. Quite rightly so, the risk needs to be minimised and contained. So it’s virtually impossible to get there.

Selfishly l long to get back to travelling, although only when it is safe, when ever that may be. We have been in self isolation since March, so its not surprising that we are starting to get cabin fever. Also become jealous of our friends in Australia who are doing another outback journey through the great wilderness. Chris and Jill keep posting photos of their trip through the Bungle Bungles. Looks amazing.Wish we were there enjoying the chilli con carne wrap or whatever delight Jill produces from the back of the 4x4 animal. Hopefully we will be able to get out and spend a year in Australia. Need to do it before we get too old and decrepit. Perhaps in a couple of years time. get the cruise over to Sydney or Darwin, organise an extended visa and do all the outback things we enjoy, returning a year later on another ship.

 

But also all the exotic, indulgent things as well. Like the Indian Pacific railway between Sydney and Perth, just pure luxury. The world’s longest stretch of straight track, including tours of Adelaide; Broken Hill and the odd wine tastings and a cooking demonstrations. Plus gorgeous food and wines whilst on board, travelling in splendour. How better to experience the landscape, especially the hills of the Great Dividing Range. 

Whilst talking train journeys, we could also head off to Darwin via the big RED CENTRE on the luxury Ghan. Salivating already.

A few of Jill and Chris's images from facebook, enjoying the outback experience with their trusty roof top tent. By god, have you ever seen such a massive tent on top of a car. Like the small tent that is tagged on for the housekeeping staff and maids.

Enough of dreaming, back to reality. And its sunny today. So we will be back in the garden, doing more titivating, trying to get the garden finished. Now that we are happy that this pond liner is holding the water. Unlike the other that seeped like a sieve,( bit of an exaggeration) l can put on the top layer of blocks and render the sides.

We did get out yesterday, to finish off the gates. Now totally secure, other than the bottom wilderness where the deer, pheasant and other critters use to breed. The wild section. Before we went to bed last night, we popped out onto the balcony to see one of the young male deer munching away oblivious to us humans. A great sight, as long as they refrain from eating all my roses. We are in a bubble in Argyll and Bute, and we are fortunate to be in such a beautiful area of natural beauty, yet within spitting distance of Scotland's capital, Glasgow. Nevertheless, we are not immune to the input of media, and with it the various glimpses of how the human race is destroying itself. This week read an article about the Chinese fishing fleet is massing near the protected seas around the Galapagos Islands. 

The Ecuadorian Navy has identified around 260 boats and increased patrols to ensure they do not enter the area of the ecologically sensitive islands - the inspiration for Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.

In several tweets over the weekend, Lenin Moreno described the Islands as "one of the richest fishing areas and a hotbed of life for the entire planet", and used the hashtag #SOSGalapagos. 

Back in 2017, a Chinese vessel was captured in the Galapagos Marine Reserve carrying 300 tons of marine wildlife. 

There are just too many people in this world, and they all need feeding. But we shouldn't be destroying the world to do it. There are many ways which are globally more responsible. 

Misty start to the day, but the shrimp boat is always out.

Moving on from the depressing and contentious items. We managed to get quite a bit more done in the garden this last few days. Well in between the showers that is. In fact the weather has improved, its a lot warmer and the winds are swiftly blowing the rain filled clouds away from us. 

The other day we decided to plant out our old acer. It had been in a massive pot for years, and the Japanese garden was just the right spot to give it a home. When l said we have had it for years, its been in the pot for over 20 years. Our biggest task was to get it from the front of the house, down the slope to the rear. It was so heavy, we couldn't even lift it.Thought of buying or borrowing a sack barrow, but the muddy slope on one side and the steps on the other were not really conducive to that method. Then we had a light bulb moment. We remembered watching Garden Rescue and the Rich Brothers move trees, by laying the tree and pot on its side. Then laying the wheel barrow on its side and rolling the tree into it. With a struggle and a few puffs, we manage to get them both upright. Then the weight assisted in get it down the slope and into position.

We had the hole already dug, but we had to empty the water from it prior to preparing it for the tree. Due to the solid earth, compressed clay and stone we have to revert to extreme measures when digging holes. Using hole spikes and pick axes to get down to some substrate that is reasonable. Normally a metre down, then fill the bottom layer with pebbles for drainage, topped with a mixture of sifted soil(clay), grit and wet rotted horse manure. To help matters we also mounded the earth around the trees base to deflect any standing water. To maintain the Japanese theme we then covered the mound with moss.

The laborious job of digging out holes for shrubs and trees. Not so much digging as excavating. I think raised beds will be the way to go. 

Finished off making another moss covered mound and starting the surround with slate chips. Although we removed these afterwards, deciding it would be better to use 2mm chips and have a raked effect. All we have to do is source the chips. Along with the salt and vinegar.

Very impressed with the outcome if l say so myself. Then whilst Judith painted the gates and storage doors in matching black stain l erected an oak bench that l had cobbled together from some left over steel columns that l had cut and welded up and a solid length of oak. A remnant from France. Concreting them into the ground across from the fire pit.

Garden storage under the lower decking

Another day, and another change in the weather. Rain. Yest the next seven days is looking good with plenty of heat and NO RAIN.

Hay ho, so its a paper work day in doors. Once we have done our Tai Chi and popped into Dunoon to offload two boxes for the charity shops that we have had in storage for the duration of the lock down. A visit to the tip and then collect more bags of cement from the builders merchant to enable us to continue with the steps down the hill.

Home for lunch and sort out outstanding matters. The pandemic has caused quite a few headaches which take time and perseverance to resolve. Many involving refunds is an ongoing saga, which the majority are presently still up in the air. Others are more mundane, like the weekly lost parcels from Toolstation to resolve. You email them to advise missing items, but you get no response other than an automated reply saying it will take at least 7 days to get a response. So eventually you phone, or at least try. After ten minutes of listening to " your custom is really important to us, you are now one hundred and tenth in the queue" the line dies, and you have to start the process again.

By the way, my work boots never did arrive. Eventually did speak to an assistant who was very apologetic, and issued a reorder, and advised they would be with me in a day. Two days later received an email to say they are out of stock and a refund has been issued.

Next week we are going over on the ferry to the mainland. Our first steps back into the new world. So l will order my boots and other materials and collect them in person from Screwfix.