How bright the sun was this morning,I had not drawn the curtains fully last night and so I was awake at first light. I watched the parakeets sidling along the branch outside there nest,they are very affectionate with each other during the nesting season, but only to their own mate. If any interloper arrives on the scene there is a battle royal as they defend their nest. This morning a pair of magpies were prospecting in the garden and they decided to have a look if there were any young in the parakeets nest hole. One of the magpies waited on the branch while the bolder of the two poked his head inside the nest hole, this was very bad judgement on his part as the female parakeet had just returned to the nest and was in no mood for company. I can only imagine what took place as I could not see in to the hole, it is enough to say that the magpie now has a large bald spot on his head, round one to the parakeets.
Magpies are in the business of robbing the nests of other birds to feed their own offspring and as we had a large number of them here they can be a perfect menace. I have developed a way of making them fly off by imitating the warning call of a crow. This makes them think there is danger and they leave the area at once. The down side of this ploy is the odd looks I get from passers who probably think I am potty.......perhaps I am!
As soon as I was dressed I went down stairs and began the days bread making, two large split tin loaves, two baguettes and two small cob loaves, one of which was for the boys next door. Breakfast came next, pancakes with lemon and sugar. I cleared the kitchen, and set off to the garden centre to purchase some spinach seed. Once home I prepared the steak burgers for dinner, this time adding sun dried tomatoes, a mix of rosemary, thyme and marjoram from the garden and some onion granules, I hate burgers with onions in them but I like the onion flavour so I cheat!
At last I was free to go out into the garden, I had planed to sow spinach, move a large potted Hosta to a new location, prepare a large tub for a sowing of parsley and another for planting out my early pea seedling. Unfortunately the first thing I did was run a huge thorn into the knuckle of my index finger, so I went indoors to deal with it at one. Armed with cotton wool, surgical spirit, a fine needle and some tweezers I set about trying to remove the pesky thing, while tweezing it out I had the misfortune to break the blessed thing in half and was obliged to poke about with a needle for ages before finally succeeding in dislodging the remaining piece of thorn. In all it was two centimetres long and I have to tell you that it hurt a damn sight more coming out than it did going in, which was bad enough in all conscience.
Once outside again I finished moving the Hosta to its new home and sowed the parsley,(Champion Moss Curled and Hamburg) in a big container, this task was accompanied by much swearing and cursing, it is said that parsley will not germinate unless it has been cursed and sent to the devil seven times. I tried once sowing without the swearing and had no parsley at all that year. It is also said that only a witch can grow good parsley, mine is always vigorous, so perhaps it is a true saying.
There was no time to do more gardening as I had to burger off indoors to cook dinner and make a ham and mozzarella baguette for my sons super at work. This I did with a very bad grace but I soon cheered up when the boys said how much they were enjoying their meal. My good nature restored we ate a merry meal and then I went out to potter around the garden for a few minutes before coming in for a bath.
I really must make an effort to get out a lot earlier tomorrow. I make this resolution almost daily,to no avail. Oh well a man's reach must exceed his grasp or what's a heaven for. Night night.
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