Let There Be Light

When out shopping recently, we spotted some new lights for the front gate posts. What a bargain, we thought! Ed undid the previous ones (which worked, but lit up the sky, not the gate) and fitted the new ones. BANG. The main house fuse blew. Not a problem, wait a minute and re-set. adjust the wires. BANG. Again. And again, and again. Then the (electric) gates stopped working too, and Ed had to climb over them to get back in! Finally, we called out an (English) electrician who said that we would have to dig up the drive and find the splitter box, then he would come back and fix it. Hmmm. sounding expensive and unnecessary. Sure enough, the next day, Ed tried again, and this time wired the lamp up 'incorrectly' and everything works perfectly! Spanish electrics!!

Flowerpots

We have found some beautiful standard Polygala's (Milkwort) for the flower tubs Ed made. They have pride of place, either side of the front step. Assuming that Max doesn't eat them, they should flower for most of the year. They certainly make a lovely focal point to the front of the house.

Stairway to Heaven

We have aquired some lovely stone cladding for the steps Ed made in the garden. For the last 2 days, Ed has been covering up the breeze blocks, in spite of his bad back! When it is all finished, it will look fabulous. I know he looks funny sitting on the chair - but he has to take his time figuring out which stones to put where. Roll-on the summer.

Flowerpot Man number 2

Isn't he clever? Ed has made me a second flowepot man. We have put this one on the wall, right at the bottom of the garden. (Makes you realise just how big the garden is!) One of the neighbours has seen him from her garden and taken a facy to him. I'll have to make sure that he doesn't go 'walkabout'. (Only joking - I would know where to look first!) You can see by the size of the dogs, just how big he is. Once the wall is rendered and painted white, he will look perfect there.

Flowerpot Man

Ed has made me a lovely flowerpot man. (As well as 3 beautiful wooden flower tubs) Although the man doesn't have any flowers in his pot at the moment, Ed has actually put some bird food in the pot, so hopefully he will bring some entertainment to the garden.

Weeding

Ed has been weeding the front garden - with the digger! We didn't have much undergrowth, but fallen pine needles and cones are considered to be dangerous. They are a very high fire risk. Now that we have thinned out the trees a little, Ed was able to get right in, and use the blade on the machine to clear the ground. Now all we need, is a skip to take the rubbish away. (again)

Mad Max

Well, at last, we seem to have some good news regarding Max. I have studied the internet a lot, and I am quite certain that he had the right diagnosis (not that I am a vet!). Apparently these types of abcesses are very difficult to treat. Now, at last, he has finished with his anti-biotics, and is just taking a course of osteoporosis tablets. As you can see from the video, he is no longer lethargic, and Paddy has got his playmate back again.

Pretty Almonds

Well, the poor almond trees that John hacked to within an inch of their lives, have tried to flower again! The one's that got a really good cut, have only got a few new growths, but those he did first (more cautiously) have still got a lot of branches on, and so are full of flowers. As there are so many branches missing, they are fuller than last year. They look really wonderful. Next year, those that got the sharper cuts will look good too. I am hoping that we will go for a ride into the mountains in the next few days, to see the almond groves. They were truly spectacular last year, but I didn't have my camera with me. I will be more organised this time!