Today for the second time in a week I felt a very real chill in the wind and was glad to snuggle in to my cloak as I went out on my errands. Evenings too are nippy now and for the past few nights I have closed the larger windows in my room leaving only the small top ones to afford ventilation.
Our little cat has not yet become accustomed to the change in the season but she does seem glad of the fur cushion recently placed in her garden house. Still wanting to go in and out of the windows at night she can be a perfect menace for poor Pa who sleeps on the ground floor,soon however she will remember the delights of winter quarters,the soft beds,the comfy chairs,the fur rugs and the warm radiators;when she remembers she will be contented again and peace will be restored.
This week's strong winds are stripping the trees of leaves before they have a chance to change in to their Autumn colours and the constant showers of acorns and conkers have both the local children and the local squirrels filled with glee.
I have been told that plying with conkers is now banned in schools on health and safety grounds,what a load of tosh! The primary school which I attended held and annual conker championship each year,supervised by the staff it was a source of great fun for all concerned and had the advantage of limiting the game to a set period of time for anyone caught playing conkers in school before the contest was disqualified from entering.
Everyone had their favoured way of hardening their chosen conker although some methods,such as baking were not allowed and derision would be heaped upon the head of the offender if caught out.
Children,who,like myself lived well outside the main village found that at conker time money could be made. In our tiny hamlet there were many horse chestnut trees and the competition for the best conkers was not so fierce as in the village below. We sold,or traded conkers for several weeks before the contest and money boxes rattled nicely with threepenny bits and pennies; we always remembered however to save the real monster sized conkers for ourselves so it was usually a hamlet child who won the prize.
Although the prize of a book was most welcome the real accolade was in owning a conker which had destroyed all opposition,my young brother once had an eighty fiver which he kept for many years as a keepsake.
In the kitchen today all was cosy as I spent the morning baking coconut and blueberry cookies,in honour of the change of season,the boys fell upon them while they were still hot and I was glad that I had made four dozen.
As I write the sun is setting and a shivery wind has risen to shake yet more leaves from the lime trees in the lane,further up the lane the last rays of sunshine are lighting up a large bush of sweetbrier which now sports an heavy crop of rose hips. These will I hope attract the Redwings and Fieldfares again this year,beautiful winter visitors and a sign of hard weather to come.
It is later now and darkness has fallen, the cat Twiggy has just come in from the orchard smelling of outdoors and demanding attention. Soon she and I will be curled up she on my fur throw and I under it beautiful Twiggy,may she live forever.
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