sunshine means gardening time
It is April. The sun is shining.
What would I normally be doing at this time of the year.
I would be getting the garden ready for the summer season ahead and geting it all beautiful for my Easter Guests and the season ahead..
Above is where the hot tub was - now a naked sunbathing space and a beautiful sun trap.
Sadly, there will be no Easter guests and - probably - not much of a summer season afterwards. The sun will shine and it will probably be the hottest summer we have had in decades - probably - as we all have to distance ourselves from others and not find ourselves in a crowd of people - and in the hight of a summer season that is going to be very hard for many.
My life has not changed very much.
I am home a lot as I run my business from home. I walk the dog and shop but other than that, rarely go out and rarely in the evenings - so being at home working all day on various projects is normal for me.
What is not normal is not to have new faces to talk and share with. So I started getting the garden area cleaned up and ready for the summer ahead - even if it will be me and my dog and few others.
The new hot tub I bought and so very much enjopyed last year, has been taken down and stored.
HUGE amount of work - as it had sat there all winter and was slimey and needing a good scrub and sterilization, drying and ready to be stored for the summer.
I had plans to use it for my weekend guests throughout the season, but with a disasterous season fusorecast because of self isolation and fear of being too close - and with half the planet now living on benefits or a grant / loan of some kind - and with millions going to now be unemployed, business will close, the high street really will die off now, and while there is the possibility that many will not be going abroad so might vacation in the UK instead, I can still see a slim season and the cost of a hot tub will be too much.
I have also reduced my prices to 50% of what they were last year as an incentive - and to try and offer some holidays at a reasonable cost - and with a reduced income yet full expenditure as electricity and so forth aint cheap or free during this time, and we will be cutting back on expenses where we can.
This end of the terrace is an afternoon and evening sun trap - perfectly placed - private and serine and a wonderful space to spend a lazy afternoon when the sun shines.
Too many people tell us they need us, how they would be devestated if we closed etc. so this is our way of trying to stay afloat after my savings have run out - and after I have maxed out my credit cards and after I have gone back on the streets to earn some dosh ( that last part is a joke.,.. although it might come to that.... ? ?
So the garden is looking lovely even if a little short on new bedding plants and colour, as we are not allowed to shop and the nurseries are close. BUT - I shall do what gardeners for hundreds of years have done, take some cuttings from the Geraniums I still have in the garden ( yes - they survive a winter down here ) and shall see what I can get from that. After all, my Gran's garden was always a mass of colour and this is decades before we lazy gardeners bought our plants already established and we just planted, watered and fed... the easy part - so now - if I can - I shall go Grannies route.
Keeping myself busy is not a problem as with a big hotel, there is always stuff to do, just depends whether I want to be bothered or not... ha ha
Keep well.
Keep busy.
Keep occupied. Suggestions of things to do: Go through your wardrobe, sort out for charity all the things you have not worn in a year -
Clean out the airing cupboard - if you have one.
Alphabetically organise your CV's or DVD's or music on your phone.
Rearrange your furniture to something new and unusual. Clean and sort out the kitchen cupboards.
Follow a recipe from a cook book and see how well you do.
Sew, Glue, Stick, Paint, Mend, Weave, Patch, Repair, Write, Draw, - do something - an old hobby can be picked up, or a new one discovered..
One friend recently thought he would get back into painting - pictures on a canvass - and right before 'lock down' had actually bought everything needed to see this become achieved, so he is busy painting and trying new mediums and having a ball and this is a perfect time for him.
It can be done.. if the will is there. You either become a fat slob and live in a mess and do nothing but complaion, eat, drink and smell - or you can be proactive in your life's destiny and use this period to achieve something good... even if just keeping in contact through whatever medium you choose, and make sure others are okay besides just your self.
Back to the garden . Still a few hours work yet to do.
John
