my brain is finally catching up

Not catching ON quite yet but definitely catching UP!

Changing locations every week for the last month left me a bit tired and more anxious than usual.

Now I am here in Melbourne – gardening and walking and settling in with Daughter and it is a great relief.

I am so grateful not to have another flight on the horizon. Moving fast frequently is a bit like juggling pots – you never take your eye off the dates and times revolving in your brain. So to stop and unpack and settle for a (hopefully) long while is such a relief.

The compact kitchens garden development is in high gear due to a gathering being organised by Sophie’s friends to celebrate her pregnancy. The bloody baby shower. So we have to have all the gardens finished and dressed by then.

A video of the garden from two days ago.

I can’t have all these people coming to a party on a demolition site.

More on that here. Yesterday’s newsletter is a goodie and also contains Chapter One of The Blue Castle by LM Montgomery. She is a Canadian author writing a hundred years ago! And I am loving the reading.

There are some photos of the progression in the newsletter. And here is the first corner of the garden finished.

I garden in views. As though each view has a frame. Because that is how I think – I am always mentally framing images. I have introduced round soft curves here to balance the straight brutalist lines of the new raised bed. And draw to eye to the back of the garden. This one is going to be a beautiful view.

The straight unkind lines of the raised bed will be softened as I go too. With plantings of hardy herbs outside the beds.

Especially rounding these sharp corners. Sharp corners are not natural in nature. So eventually there will be swooping curves of a ground level garden along this long straight edge.

The soil dumped in the driveway is one quarter mushroom compost. Daughter has a routine appointment with her midwife team this morning so I have to stay clean until we get back. But I think I am roughly half way shifting the soil with this antique wheelbarrow lent by the lady across the road. I will do more this afternoon and hopefully finish Wednesday before the rain. At least I hope there will be rain.

The man next door was helping until he mentioned that he – could not help tomorrow as he had an appointment with his cardiologist- it was 33c and I sent him home. Very kindly. With brownies that Daughter had made as a thank you. Shifting dirt is not for people with heart conditions. Merciful heavens!!

So I carried on and it was fine.

There are four cubic metres of soil. Granny Nanny will get it done.

And yes I see that fence. Leaning into the neighbours place. We will go into discussions with the neighbours at some point to build a new one. I will leave the back fence free of gardens – for work to be done down there some time in the future. Hopefully not too soon as it will be an expense.

On the way back from the hospital (routine appt) we will pick up two more raised bed kits and spinach and Silverbeet seeds. These smaller beds will sit next to the shed/studio for shady plantings and that will be all for the moment. I have been chatting with people and there are lots of souls who will enjoy vegetables on this street. And bread. Daughters Dad bought her a freezer and we intend to make good use of it.

I will be at the Tip Shop and second hand shops weekly looking for cast iron bread baking pots and items to clean up and resell.

The big birds – cockatoos – are evidently raiders in this area so I am already making plans to hang nets above tomatoes.

Later today I will sow some greens. Dale from The Fellowship has sent me lots of Aussie seeds that she saved so all the autumnal sowings of veg will go in asap. I am a little late with sowing but the winters are mild here.

Anyway I need to get busy! Someone needs to get off my bed and get the day started.

TimTam is determined to be on my bed in the morning so I am going with the flow. I am Not a bed dog person but there you are.

Have a lovely day!

Celi